Launch from Cape Canaveral (KSC); landing on Edwards AFB; number one main engine shutdown prematurly, resulting in an Abort To Orbit (ATO) trajectory (planned orbit was 400 km). The countdown for a planned launch on July 12, 1985 had been halted at T-3 seconds after main engine ignition when a malfunction of number two Space Shuttle Main Engine (SSME) coolant valve caused shutdown of all three main engines.

Third flight of Spacelab (Mission SL-2); first time of testing "Instrument Pointing System" (IPS) in orbit, which was developed by Dornier Corporation; deploying and retrieving of platform PDB; experiments in life sciences, plasma physics, astronomy, high energy astrophysics, solar and atmospheric physics and technical research; mission extended one day for additional payload activities.